Vanderbilt University Intramural Sports 7v7 Shallow End Water Polo Rules I. GENERAL RULES A. Registration is $60 per team. B. Each participant must present a valid Commodore card and be on the IMleagues.com roster in order to participate. C. All Vanderbilt University students, faculty, and staff are encouraged to participate in Intramural Sports. Leagues include Open, Co-Rec, and Greek. Individuals may participate in accordance with their own gender identity. D. Intramural sports with varsity or club sports counterparts are limited to either one former varsity athlete or two club sport members. Teams will forfeit all games in which they are found to be in violation of this rule. E. Teams should arrive 15 minutes before the scheduled start time of their game. Teams will be given a 10 minute grace period after their posted start time to have the minimum number of players required to begin. Once the grace period expires, the game will be declared a forfeit. Game clocks will be adjusted to account for late starts. F. Attire 1. Uniforms Bathing suit or other proper swimwear. Goggles are allowed. 2. Shoes no shoes of any kind are allowed for water polo. 3. Pads and Braces No pads or braces may be worn above the waist. Leg and knee braces made of hard, unyielding material must be covered on both sides and all edges must be lined with appropriate slow-recovery padding. 4. Jewelry - No jewelry or any other item deemed dangerous by the Intramural Staff may be worn. Any player wearing exposed permanent jewelry (e.g. body piercings) will not be permitted to play. F. Forfeit Policy 1. Teams have a 10 minute grace period before games are declared a forfeit 1. First offense = warning 2. Second offense = ejection from the league without refund 2. Captains must notify the Competitive Sports staff (Wade) via email of a forfeit no later than 3pm on game day to avoid penalty. Emails should be sent to wade.e.evans@vanderbilt.edu 3. An attempt to reschedule the game will made by pro staff if ample notice is given and the opposing team is available
II. III. IV. TEAM COMPOSITION A. Each team shall consist of seven players (six field players and one goalkeeper). The game may start with a minimum of five (four field players and one goalkeeper). EQUIPMENT A. Proper swimwear is required. B. No hand jewelry is permitted while participating in Inner Tube Water Polo GAME PROCEDURES A. The duration of a game shall be 30 minutes of actual play, in two periods of 15 minutes each, with the teams changing ends at halftime. A 5-minute interval must be allowed between halves. Time starts on the referee s whistle at the start of each half and will run continuously until the end of the half. Each team receives two, oneminute, time-outs per game. B. The entire ball passing over the goal line between the goal posts counts as a goal. One point is awarded for each goal. If a ball is thrown by a player into his/her own goal, it is scored as a goal. C. If the game is tied at the end of regulation play, a sudden death period of three minutes in length will be started. If still tied at the end of three minutes the winner will be determined by teams taking an equal amount of alternating shots at the goal until a goal is scored. A coin toss will determine which team throws first. Example: Team A throws and misses, Team B throws and scores, Team B wins. If Team B misses, another member from Team A shoots, etc. V. GAME SETUP A. At the start or restart of a game, the goalkeeper must be positioned between the goal posts, and the field players must take up positions at least one yard apart on their respective goal lines, grasp the ends of the pool and wait for the referee s signal after he/she has ascertained the teams are ready. B. The start of a game is signaled by one blast of the whistle, and the referee must then release or throw the ball onto the center line. It is a technical foul to start before the referee blows his/her whistle. If this occurs the ball shall be awarded to the offended team at the halfway line. C. The GOALKEEPER AREA is located on each end of the pool and extends two yards out into the water. No player shall hold the ball in this area for more than five seconds. D. The PENALTY AREA is located on each end of the pool and extends two yards out into the water E. A FREE TOSS is awarded after any rule infraction or personal foul. The non-violating team member nearest to the spot of infraction puts the ball into play by passing. Opponents may not touch, impede or interfere with his/her attempt to pass the ball. One PASS must be made before any attempted goal. F. A penalty throw is awarded to the offensive team if an offensive player is fouled inside the 4-yard penalty area while controlling the ball and facing the goal. All players,
except the goalkeeper, must leave the penalty area until the throw is taken. No player may be within one yard of the thrower. Should the penalty be missed, the ball becomes live and play continues. The penalty throw must be taken outside the 4-yard area. G. A penalty throw is also awarded for each five fouls accumulated by a team. These fouls carry over from one half to the next and also into overtime periods. H. After a goal is scored the referee will signal the goalkeeper who was scored upon to put the ball back into play. The goalkeeper must put the ball in play within five seconds or lose the ball to the opposing team. VI. GAME RULES A. The defense may contact the offensive player s throw if that offensive player has the ball. The ball may be separated from the offensive player by the defensive player either by grabbing the ball away. B. A drop ball is a ball thrown by the official into the center of the pool to begin play for each period C. The ball may be advanced by a player throwing or carrying the ball. One or both hands may be used at any time. D. The ball must remain above the surface of the water at all times during the game. E. The goalkeeper may not throw the ball beyond the halfway point of the pool. F. The goalkeeper may not hang on the crossbar of the goal. G. The goalkeeper may not touch the opposing players. H. The goalkeeper may not hold the ball for more than five seconds in the goalkeeper area.
I. The field players may not cross the imaginary 2-yard line at any time during the game (except at the start of each quarter) J. On out-of-bounds plays, the ball goes to the team not touching the ball last and at the point of departure from the pool. The player nearest to where the ball goes out takes the toss K. When the ball becomes dead as the result of an out-of-bounds or an infraction, which does not involve a penalty throw, it may be put back in play either after the referee handles the ball, or (if this is impractical because the referee is on the far side of the pool) after a player on defense checks the ball and hands it back to the offensive player nearest the point of infraction. After each shot or goal, the ball becomes a goalie ball and possession changes to the goalkeeper s team. L. Substitutes may wait in the lane space adjacent to the field of play known as the substitution zone. M. Substitutions may be made at half time, during time-outs, or after a goal is scored, and not during actual play. Teams with possession of the ball after a violation may make substitutions. If the team possessing the ball after a violation chooses to substitute, the other team will be allowed to substitute as well. N. An offensive player with the ball can protect himself/herself from the defensive player, but he/she may not protect himself/herself by dropping the ball beside his/her person, which is actually still in his/her possession. O. Only the goalkeeper is permitted to be positioned in the goal area. If another defender positions him/herself in the goalkeeper area his/her team shall be issued a warning for first infraction. Upon each additional infraction of this rule a penalty throw that will be awarded for the offended team. VII. LOSS OF POSSESSION INFRACTIONS A. Starting before the referee blows his/her whistle at the start or restart of the game. B. Pushing off from the sides during actual play. C. Holding onto the side of the pool wall while in possession of the ball. D. Playing the ball or interfering with play when out of the field of play. E. Pushing off from, or interfering with, the free limb movement of an opponent unless he/she is holding the ball. F. Deliberately splashing water in the face of an opponent. G. Holding the ball under the water. H. Goalkeeper throwing the ball more than half the length of the pool. I. Offensive player within the goalkeeper's area. J. Goalkeeper holding the ball more than five seconds or any player holding the ball in the goalkeeper area for five seconds. K. Holding, pushing, hitting, jumping on, tackling, dunking, or dumping an opponent. L. Goalkeeper holding onto the side of the pool while catching or passing the ball. M. Kicking or attempting to kick the ball in order to propel it.